Sunday
Today we went to St. Stephen's Lutheran Church, where Helen and her husband Peter are members. The music was good, but very different... the man who led worship takes hymns and puts them to different melodies to make them more contemporary. During the English church service there is also a Chinese service going on in the hall next door, and after the services the two groups of people join together for a lunch. It nice to meet more people, there were even some Asian students who live at Hosanna Heights that we ran into. After the meal we went to coffee with two church members at a place called Amore. I ordered a macchiato, which is very different than the types of macchiato I have received in the states. It was in a glass about an inch tall... and very strong, it almost reminded me of a espresso shot. On Sundays they block off a road in the city for people to put up stands and sell their goods, so the three of us went and looked around while Helen and Peter bought clothes for their daughters wedding in two weeks. I bought a new hat- surprised? :) We returned to Helen's house and finished our laundry, went on a walk, had dinner, then she took us back to Hosanna Heights. It was a nice weekend away.

Monday
Today we walked to Magill then were transported to the op shop (thrift store) at the Blair Athol location. We had heeps and heeps (lots) of donations to sift through because people are feeling the need to donate after an even like the bush fires in Victoria. So, we spend all day on our feet going through clothes and deciding if they were good enough to send to various op shops or missions, or if they were not good enough to pass down to people. It is interesting to see some of the things people give away, some are very nice and others I wonder why people thought somebody else would want them. There are quite a bit of things donated that are stained in blood or other things that cannot be removed.

After being at the op shop for about six hours we took a bus into the city. We ended up at a reasonably priced European clothing store where we all three made purchases. We then toured more along Rundel Mall, went into The Reject Shop (dollar store), and had our dinners that we packed before we went to The Underground. We arrived there early (where the Wednesday night church service was held) so Hilary and Ellie sat and read some books while I continued to walk around in the city, although nothing was open because everything closes at five besides grocery stores and only a few restaurants. Shortly after I returned from my walk the pastor arrived at the church and we set up for packing backpacks for O week.

O week is a weekend where all the people who graduate from college (high school in the states) to to various places, usually beaches, to celebrate their graduation. Unfortunately, almost all students there go crazy and get drunk because the legal drinking age is 18 here. The backpacks contained tea, hot coco mixes, snacks, free bowling passes, maps of Adelaide, etc., so students can have alternative things to do besides getting hammered at this event. After packing bags we caught a bus back to Hosanna Heights where yet again, my Internet wasn't working. So, I read a book and listened to music until I feel asleep.

I wish I had more time to write more than the basics, but I ought to be heading back to work.